1. Field of the Invention
This disclosure relates to broadcast services for wireless (mobile) communications.
2. Discussion of the Background Art
This disclosure provides a method for processing errors related to roaming between networks that support broadcast services, and a system and terminal thereof.
In general, a broadcast service (i.e., a BCAST service) refers to a service for providing over-the-air (OTA) broadcasting or various additional information via mobile terminals. The broadcast service denotes a new type of service for a mobile terminal which includes both a broadcast service by which a service provider provides all subscribers that subscribed to its services with useful information, and a multicast service which provides various information only to a certain group of subscribers having subscribed to a particular subject or content.
Current mobile communication networks provide simple services which give some limited information to subscribers. However, a BCAST service for providing a multimedia broadcast or providing various contents has yet to be fully implemented in a desirable manner.
Even if BCAST service is to be more properly implemented and provided in the near future, such service may be independently operated in each network. Accordingly, if a user has moved into an area managed by another network, a roaming service is required.
In addition, the BCAST service is intended to provide a plurality of subscribers with the same service at the same time. Also, since only users who have subscribed to a particular service provided by a service provider are able to receive that particular service, the users should have previously completed a procedure of subscribing to the particular service provided by the service provider, upon providing user information and buying their desired service.
User information is typically managed by a particular service provider, namely, a home service provider, and the corresponding service may be received only within a home network area managed by the home service provider.
Therefore, in order for the user to continuously receive a broadcast service even after moving into a visited (or visiting) network which belongs to another service area, a roaming procedure for the broadcast service should first be defined.
The related art broadcast service has been defined based on an area(s) managed by (or belonging to) a home service provider. Also, roaming techniques for broadcast services is gaining more attention in recent times. Because a broadcast service aims to provide the same content to a plurality of users, if subscriber information is checked and particular content desired to be purchased is selected at the beginning of the service subscription, then the service may be freely received.
In order for the user to receive a roaming service for which the user moves from a home network (i.e., the home service provider) into a visited network (i.e., a visited service provider), a BCAST Subscription Management (BSM) server of the home network and the BSM server of the visited network should exchange subscriber information and area information related to a service(s) which the user has bought or can buy. Also, problems which may have occurred during the above-described process should be informed precisely to the subscribers.
It is assumed that the subscriber terminal has already subscribed to a roaming service from the home network. Also, it is assumed that the subscriber terminal has identification information of the visiting network to which it will move to from the home network, whereby such identification information may include ‘visited service provider ID and address’ and ‘visited service provider BSM server ID and address’.
In the related art, even though the ‘visited service provider ID and address’ or the ‘visited service provider BSM server ID and address’ have changed, when there is a failure in roaming service authorization (or authentication) due to improper updating or improper designation, the subscriber should undesirably repeat the request for a roaming service via his terminal, which causes delays and problems in proceeding with the roaming service.